Who Is Mehraj Malik, The Lone Contender Who Opened AAP’s Account In J&K Elections

Mehraj Malik of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), who gave the party its first-ever election victory in Jammu and Kashmir during the local body polls in December 2020, is currently leading in the race for the Doda legislative seat as votes are being counted for the region’s first Assembly election in a decade.

According to Election Commission data as of 1:30 PM, Malik holds a nearly 5,000-vote lead over the BJP’s Gajay Singh Rana and is ahead of the National Conference’s Khalid Najib Suharwardy by close to 10,000 votes. With 12 out of 13 counting rounds completed, Malik appears poised to win the seat.

In the 2014 election, the Doda seat was claimed by the BJP’s Shakti Raj, but historically, it has alternated between the National Conference and the Congress since the first election in 1962.

The AAP’s success in Jammu and Kashmir has surprised many, especially since the party has been unable to win any seats in Haryana, which is the home state of AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal. If the trend in Haryana holds, it would be a significant setback for Kejriwal, particularly with Delhi elections only four months away.

The defeat in Haryana also stings because AAP and the Congress failed to reach a seat-sharing agreement, despite being part of the INDIA alliance at the national level. A deal, supported by Rahul Gandhi, was reportedly close but was blocked by state leaders from both parties.

Who Is Mehraj Malik?

In Doda, Malik is leading in a region that has recently experienced a spate of terror attacks. Just this past August, an Army Captain lost his life in an encounter with terrorists in the district’s Assar area, with a civilian injured as well.

Security forces recovered a U.S.-made assault rifle and several rucksacks. Additionally, in July, J&K Police launched a major offensive against terror networks in Doda following an encounter in which four Army personnel, including an officer, were killed.

Doda also played a key role in the BJP’s election campaign, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his Jammu and Kashmir campaign there last month. His visit was the first by a sitting Prime Minister to the region in over 40 years, and extensive security was deployed in Doda and Kishtwar for the occasion.

Malik’s strong performance is seen as an exception in an election largely dominated by the National Conference-Congress alliance, which is leading in over 50 of the 90 Assembly seats. The BJP, which has never independently governed Jammu and Kashmir, is trailing with 27 leads. Exit polls had predicted a narrow advantage for the Congress-NC alliance, and current trends seem to confirm that prediction.